Ring of Honor Review - August 22, 2018

By Graham "GSM" Matthews

Chris Sabin def. Scorpio Sky

Sabin recently became the No. 1 contender to the ROH World Television Championship and is thus on a bit of a roll right now in singles competition. He and Sky had a fun, well-wrestled opening match that showcased both of their skill sets nicely. Afterward, Alex Shelley cut a heartfelt promo announcing his retirement from the ring (though he pointed out he could always return down the road) and it was actually really emotional. He mentioned how he felt getting hurt wasn't worth it anymore and thought The Motor City Machine Guns were no longer needed, which I assume was a shoot. Sabin will do well on his own but I will admittedly miss Motor City Machine Guns big time. Props to Shelley for also putting Punishment Martinez on the way out with the post-match attack.

Karen Q def. Jenny Rose

Both of these women are still works in progress, but they put together a better bout than I was honestly expecting. It was far from a mat classic, but there weren't too many sloppy spots and they were able to hold the crowd's attention. Kelly Klein, who was doing commentary for this match, cost Rose the win by acting as a distraction at ringside, so that appears to be a new feud.

Eli ISom def. FR Josie by Disqualification in a 2018 Top Prospect Tournament Quarterfinal Match

Usually, the Top Prospect Tournament takes place at the beginning of every year, so it seems extremely delayed this year for whatever reason. Isom was my clear pick to win this match considering he recently scored a pinfall win over Christopher Daniels, so how could he not go far in the tournament? I assume he won by disqualification once Jeff Cobb debuted and attacked him, causing the contest to be thrown out in the process. Speaking of Cobb, he came across like a star here and I'm looking forward to his run in Ring of Honor.

Kenny King def. Marty Scurll

I'm not sure what the beef is between King and Scurll at the moment and what their current direction is, but I'll never complain about getting an entertaining main event. They made the most of the time they were allotted and had strong chemistry together. The finish was well done with King cheating to beat Scurll, and although that was uncharacteristic of his babyface persona, the story was that Scurll attempted to cheat on multiple occasions in this outing, so it was fair game for King to do, too.

Overall Show

There are several storylines that are up in the air right now and they might be holding off until whenever their next pay-per-view is gets closer, but this was a solid show, nonetheless. Cobb showing up was a pleasant surprise, the main event was above-average, the women had a nice match, and Shelley announced his retirement from the ring, so it was a somewhat newsworthy night that flew by per usual. Next week, Christopher Daniels takes on Jay Briscoe while Bullet Club challenge The Kingdom for the ROH World Six-Man Tag Team Championship.